NEW WINDSOR, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) — Police in suburban Orange County are looking for two men who burst into an apartment, opened fire, and killed a recent college graduate.
At a home in Walden, a tight-knit family with roots in Guyana was receiving visitors Monday, and mourning a terrible loss.
Chelsea Debidin, a 21-year-old dean’s list student and recent grad from SUNY-Orange County, was shot and killed while visiting her boyfriend at his family’s Knox Village apartment.
“They kicked in the front door and basically opened fire on the residents there, in the apartment,” New Windsor Police Deputy Chief Michael Farbent said.
The local police are being assisted by state police and the FBI in the search for the two men.
A neighbour told CBS2’s Tony Aiello off-camera, he heard a bang, the sound of glass breaking and then three rapid gunshots just after midnight early Saturday morning.
At the site of the broken window on Monday, a bouquet of flowers was left in memory of the victim.
“No criminal record, a college student, a good girl by all accounts,” Farbent said. “As far as the motive right now, we’re not 100 percent certain.”
Friends are posting social media tributes to Debidin, including the following ones:
“My heart is so heavy. Not only did your beauty amaze so many, but your generosity and compassion changed many lives,” and “I’ll always remember that beautiful smile of yours.”
Police want to hear from anyone with information, or who may have seen the gunmen fleeing the scene.
Police said the victim’s boyfriend also was shot. He’s hospitalized and is expected to recover.
